Tony and the Tattered Heart
by Tomorrowsoul
Summary: The long awaited sequel to 'Jeannie and the Jealous Master' and continuation of the alternative to 'Guess Who's Going to be a Bride'. Three months after the revelation of Jeannie and Rabi's secret, Major Nelson finds himself struggling to move on from the fallout. Is there any way to repair the damage done? Or will the interference of another shatter the fragments further?
1. Chapter 1

Tony and the Tattered Heart

He stared at himself in the mirror as he had done every morning since he'd sent her away.

As he had every morning for the last three months, he pushed down the sickened feeling drifting from his heart and reminded himself just why he had done so. But regardless of his protestations that he was better off without her, no matter how he tried to forget that she had ever been part of his life, it didn't stop him occasionally hoping that he would come out of his bedroom and see her standing there, waiting expectantly for him to give him a warm embrace and good morning kiss as she had done so many times before.

And if her shining, smiling face hadn't been there to greet him, he envisioned that he would at least have heard her cheery voice humming or singing the song he had never thought to ask her to translate. He'd enter the kitchen and watch her for a moment, the joyful flourishing of her sweet, pink outfit as she went gleefully about her morning preparations. He'd smile as she noticed him, his eyes flicking away from hers briefly as he casually played with the button on his shirt cuff. He would feel her warm eyes upon him as he sat at the table and enjoyed things as they had always been.

But that fantasy was uncomfortably distant of reality.

Each morning he would leave his bedroom and find his house devoid of life, empty and soulless without the brightness of her presence. Silent without the melody of her voice. He'd sigh outwardly, allowing himself to feel that pang her absence caused before he steeled himself once more. Reminding himself once again that she had tricked him, treated him like a fool and thrown his heart aside as easily as she'd captured it.

Straightening his tie, he closed his eyes. Inhaling deeply he tried to turn his thoughts to the day ahead. Tried to turn his thoughts away from the woman whose name he couldn't bring himself to say out loud. The woman who occupied his every dream, whose name he would find on the tip of his tongue as he bolted upright in bed, startled from the dream that tortured him incessantly. A dream that threatened to thwart his professional life.

A dream he couldn't allow to pervade his waking life outside of his house.

Especially since he and Roger had another space flight to plan and prepare for. It was a flight he was in danger of being removed from if he failed to convince Doctor Bellows of his stability. He had had already lost what he couldn't help but concede was a massive part of his life. He couldn't afford to allow it to destroy the passion he had held long before she had turned his life, and his heart, upside down.

Convincing himself that he was better off alone, free to live a life he had been held from for five years, free to forge a future towards a life far removed from the interference of magical nitwits was hard enough, to convince Roger harder still but not nearly as impossible as the task that faced him this morning.

Convincing Doctor Bellows.

The dogged determination of the base's psychiatrist to open the box of secrets he had locked deep inside had increased in intensity since he had strode into his office in the middle of the night three months ago, dejected and needing to be as far away as possible from the place where those awful scenes had played out.

A bitter certainty burning its way through his heart that this time she was gone for good. That he had thrown away not only what was a close friend that he cared deeply for, but a woman he had inadvertently lost his heart to.

His Jeannie.


	2. Chapter 2

As he stepped into his office, Tony noticed instantly that he wasn't alone. He issued a short, tight smile as he acknowledged his best friend sitting on the sofa – coffee in hand. His smile was returned albeit in a warmer reflection than that received. With a nod he turned and closed the door to his office, dropping his head and allowing a shallow sigh to leave him before he turned back to face his friend.

"So," Roger ventured, taking a sip of coffee in the space of time it took him to gather his next words, "Anything?"

It was a question Tony was sure he had been asked any number of days before. Any number of mornings that played out in the same fashion as this. It was becoming an unwelcome, unwanted routine that seemed to shatter any hope that at least at work he could be just Major Anthony Nelson. Not an ex Master, but an Astronaut, a Scientist and something he had neglected to remind himself – a bachelor.

Hanging his hat on the hat stand he shook his head, pushing back the first words that sprung to the tip of his tongue, words that may cause offence to a concerned friend, he answered, albeit with a hint of coldness, "No Rog, nothing."

Roger looked down, his head lifting and bobbing down in a small nod as he pulled his lips back in a barely visible grimace. He'd almost sensed that the answer would be the same as it had been each time he'd ventured to ask. Looking back up to meet Tony's gaze he steeled himself to ask a question he'd yet been afraid to.

"Have you tried calling her?"

For a reason he didn't consciously understand, Tony guffawed in response before fixing Roger with a look that seemed to ask, why?

Taken aback by his friend's reaction, Roger looked away and pushed himself back in his seat. Sucking his lips in as he did so and holding on to a confession that he feared would garner another outburst.

"No, no I haven't, Rog." Tony managed to vocalise, aware that his initial reaction hadn't been a favourable one, though it's origin still eluded him. "To be truthful I haven't wanted to." Somehow to his ears that sounded like a lie.

Roger looked up sharply, "But why?"

"She lied to me, Rog. I'm better off without her." Another lie? Another mantra he had to recite to himself until he believed it? Clenching his jaw he continued, trying to hold back a sense of resignation from creeping into his voice, "What I need to do," He paused, doubting the words as he said them, "What I need to do is forget her."

Taking Tony's words in, Roger again nodded. He hoped that wherever she was that Jeannie wasn't listening in, that he hadn't heard what had been said. And if she had that she would know he didn't mean it. He couldn't mean it.

As if by instinct his hand found the pocket in which he kept his little black book, the source of an ever-changing supply of girls he could call upon, sometimes successfully, for a date. If his friend truly desired to find an alternative distraction to help him forget what he was missing, he had everything he needed in that book.

Before he could reach in and draw out the book, a knock on the door drew his attention and he watched as Tony looked at it briefly before moving to open it. All thoughts of delving in to his precious book's pages left his mind as he stood and nodded a greeting to Doctor Bellows. He quickly felt the Doctor's small, sharp eyes on him and felt a cold burst run down his spine and absently smiled – a small laugh escaping him as he hoped he'd be able to make a quick exit.

"Good morning, gentlemen." Doctor Bellows chimed, suspiciously watching Major Healey squirm and making a mental note to ascertain the root cause of his apparent nervousness. "I trust you're both suitably prepared for the space flight tomorrow," He looked from one to another, almost gladdened by the subtle impact his words had on the two Majors. He knew their tells like the back of his hand.

There it was, the tip of Major Healey's tongue darting out momentarily before that characteristic laugh followed and the almost predictable clasping and releasing of his hands. The small shrug that thrust the arms back slightly and another short laugh before he uttered, "Oh I think so, Doctor Bellows. Although I might check on a few things first so I'm definitely prepared. If you'll excuse me Tony, Colonel."

Doctor Bellows watched with bemusement as Major Healey left the office, coffee cup still in hand and his hat still on the sofa. Seconds elapsed before the absent-minded Major returned with a nervous chuckle and set the coffee cup on the filing cabinet and retrieved his hat before taking his leave once more. Once more leaving he and Major Nelson alone.

The tightened shift in Major Nelson's body language told him everything he needed to know. His presence was not a welcome one despite the obvious anticipation that had shown on the Major's face as he had opened the door to him. But, whether the Major liked it or not, he was here and they needed to discuss the pressing matter of the Major's fitness for the impending space flight.

The Doctor allowed himself a small smile as he noticed Major Nelson still standing in the same spot, staring absently at the door Major Healey had just exited through, a further evident sign of the distraction that seemed to be hounding the young astronaut. Shaking the smile away he let out a brief "ahem," and tried to supress his disappointment at the violent reaction to his prompt as Major Nelson seemingly whirled around.

Forcing a smile and attempting to laugh off burgeoning dread and embarrassment, Tony indicated the sofa and made a gesture towards it, "I'm sorry Doctor Bellows. Please, take a seat."

Smiling politely in response, the silver in his teeth glinting in the light, the Doctor shook his head. "I'm alright standing for now, Major. But I think perhaps you could do with sitting down."

Both knowing, and feeling, that he had no other option, Tony moved over to his desk and sat in his chair. He knew what was coming and he only hoped he was mentally prepared enough to jump the hurdles Doctor Bellows was about to lay out for him.

Trying to act coy, Tony placed his hands on his desk and fanned them. "So, Doctor Bellows, what would you like to talk about?"

No matter how many responses he had dreamt up, no matter how many questions he had thought up answers for, no matter how many arguments he had readied himself to draw upon, nothing prepared him for Doctor Bellows' opening statement.

"Let's talk about Jeannie."


	3. Chapter 3

Tony wasn't sure whether he had laughed out loud at the lightning fast curveball that had been thrown at him or shuddered dramatically but his brain went into frenzy as he tried to recover. Feeling the seconds of his silence drop away like a million shells he managed to sputter, "Talk about who, Sir?"

Folding his arms, Doctor Bellows frowned slightly before repeating himself, "Jeannie." He watched the same 'deer in headlights facing imminent impact' expression pass across the Major's face before it was quickly swallowed, "The girl you told me about three months ago, the one that distracted you so. The one I'm sure distracts you now."

"What…what are you talking about, Sir?" Tony stammered, still struggling to recover.

"I would have said it speaks for itself." The Doctor intoned sternly, lowering his head but keeping his eyes focused on the squirming Major. "I have been watching you very closely since we had that meeting three months ago, Major Nelson. Very closely indeed. At first I put down your distraction and erratic behaviour down to jealousy but even though I've noticed a subsidence in the odd occurrences that usually surround you around here lately, your distraction appears to be caused by something else. I am loath to give you this warning Major, but unless you tell me explicitly what's bothering you, and help me work with you to set this issue aside, I will have to report to General Schaffer that you're unfit for the space flight tomorrow. Is it that clear?"

"Yes, Sir." Tony nodded, looking away into a far-off corner of the room. His heart thudding and a nauseous lump rising in his throat.

Seeing that the Major wasn't going to be forthcoming in opening up to him, Doctor Bellows relaxed his stance slightly and decided to try to coax out a lead. "Did you tell Jeannie how you feel about her?"

Resigned, Tony shook his head. "Not exactly, I wanted to but…" He trailed off, while his mouth closed his mind continued talking. Mentally he was telling Doctor Bellows everything. Everything about being on the cusp of finally confessing his feelings to Jeannie but her sister picking the perfect time to scupper that plan. Almost relaying word for word the discussion between the two Jeannies and the confusion he'd felt as he'd tried to interpret what they were saying. The arrival of, he couldn't say _his_ name, before everything became horrifically clear and he exploded in a furious mass that left him devastated and confused.

"But?" The Doctor picked up – tearing Tony away from his internal dialogue, pushing deeper into the opening he could see forming in the Major's shell. "What happened, Major? Why couldn't you tell her how you felt?"

He put it as simply as he could, as simply as his exhausted mind would allow. "She'd already made her feelings for the other man pretty clear. They had a history together. She didn't tell me that they'd been something before until I found out." The nauseous lump in his throat threatened to overtake him at his admittance, "I reacted pretty badly and now for all I know I've probably pushed them together. I told her to get out of my house and never come back, the same to him too. I haven't seen or heard from them since." ' _And I probably never will again'_ he added to himself.

"Ah." Doctor Bellows stated simply before tilting his head back and looking at the ceiling. Though part of him relished in the fact he'd finally been able to get a frank and open, without any wild connotations, account from the Major, a larger part of him felt a small form of sympathy. Lowering his head, he glanced a moment at the window behind the Major, taking a breath before offering some advice he hoped would help. "Then I would say you have two options, Major. Number one is to acknowledge how badly you feel about your actions and the reasons why, find her and tell her how you feel. Of course if she has formed a relationship with this other gentleman you may find your interest in her isn't reciprocated. However, there's a likelihood that she isn't even seeing this man and with any luck she'll be receptive to what you have to say and choose you. With a little bit of work on both sides everything will work out fine." He paused as he watched his words sinking in before continuing, "Option number two is to simply forget about her and move on. If you think there's no hope in reaching her, or you can't forgive what she's done, then you have to accept things for what they are and concentrate on other matters. And other women." Doctor Bellows finished, feeling satisfied that he had made at least a small amount of headway. "Now how do you feel now you've gotten things off your chest?"

Shifting his gaze from the space just centimetres from his desk, Tony looked up at the Doctor. He studied his feelings for a moment, running through the myriad thoughts drifting through his mind. He realised he had never had as frank a discussion with the man as this one. Despite not having divulged the full story of he and Jeannie, he felt a sense of relief at offloading even a small segment of his troubles. Laying them open to someone he had done his utmost for years avoiding telling anything to.

"Better, I think." He stood and did something he had never visualised himself doing. Reaching out a hand he waited for the Doctor to do likewise and shook hands with him, smiling as he said, "Thank you."

A warm, non-threatening smile, lifted the corners of Doctor Bellows' mouth. He could sense a shift in the Major that satisfied, for now, the matter that irked him. Releasing the Major's hand he turned to leave the office with the words, "I will see you tomorrow Major, bright and early for your flight tomorrow morning. Don't be late."

A multi-layered wave of relief washed over Tony as his office door closed in the wake of the departing Doctor and he sank into his chair. Had it really been that easy to satisfy Doctor Bellows' demand? Was opening up all it took to keep his place on the space flight? Was he relieved because he'd shared in some small measure his feelings and what had happened or because he'd finally been able to speak, not as the Master of what five years ago had been nothing more than a fictional being, but as a man, a normal man?

He felt a dip in his lightened spirits as he played upon the last. Looking inside himself he couldn't determine the location of the answer. Though he tried to seek it, it eluded him. At what point had the Doctor's words turned his thoughts? Which option presented to him had loosened the lump in his throat? Why had a single thought clouded the burgeoning clarity of his feelings?

Coming to a decision he lifted the receiver of his telephone and dialled for the switchboard. As the voice on the other line asked who he wished to be connected to he waited to be put through the person he requested. Within moments the phone was answered and he allowed himself a smile as leant forward on the desk and enthusiastically suggested, "Hey Rog, why don't we take a little look at that black book of yours?"


	4. Chapter 4

Something felt different as he walked through the front door of his house. Something had changed. Something was missing. With an almost preternatural sense he went to the place he knew it had been. A place he had passed by any number of times in the last three months without once casting a single glance upon the item that now concerned him.

It wasn't there.

Feeling a sudden sense of panicked desperation, he turned out the bureau. Papers and stationary were scattered across the floor as he searched for what he wanted to be there. It had to be.

Whirling around, he scanned the rest of the room with frantic eyes hoping that for the last three months he had allowed his memory to deceive him. Hoping that in his selective blindness he hadn't noticed its proper place. His eyes darting from one place another he found no sign and hurried to the phone. Grabbing up the receiver he turned the dial, dialling a number he knew as well as his own.

Each tone that sounded in his ear increased his impatience, the fading sense of panic feeding into a growing sense of anger. The phone was ringing on the other side, why wasn't Roger answering? Where was he?

About to give up hope that his call would be answered he lowered the receiver as if to hang up when he heard a breathless voice come on the line. Snapping the receiver back to his ear he quickly stammered, "Rog? Rog, it's me."

" _Tony?_ " The reply, still breathless. " _Boy, you're really impatient, aren't you? I heard the phone from the shower, I was just getting ready for tonight. The phone was ringing for so long I thought it was an emergency and ran in here._ "

"It is. Roger, have you seen the bottle?"

" _The bottle? I'm sorry Tony but you might need to be a bit more specific there. What bottle are you talking about?_ "

Feeling a flare of temper Tony half barked, "Jeannie's."

Her name had slipped from his lips so easily he paused, startled at how the self-control he'd held onto so tightly for so long had lapsed almost without his notice. His forehead creased into a frown at the stinging sensation it caused, a stinging feeling mixed with bitter butterflies in his stomach.

Would she have heard her name as she always had before?

Had she been there recently?

Was she still nearby somewhere?

Would she come back?

" _TONY_!" His name being shouted jolted him and he sneered at it before composing himself.

"I'm here Roger, sorry, I was distracted."

" _I'll bet_ ,"

Tony didn't miss the sarcasm in his friend's voice but bit back any rebuke. There was another time for that. Pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes he focussed himself, "What did you say?"

" _I said_ ," A tinge of irritation leaking through, " _I did the last time I was at your house. Why are you asking?_ "

"It's gone, Roger. It's disappeared. I can't see it."

" _I haven't got it if that's what you're insinuating. Besides, if her bottle's gone does it matter?_ "

He wanted to reply that it did. The last link he had, the last reminder that she had ever been in his life had gone.

Obviously sensing that he'd been distracted by another thought, Roger broke through once more. " _Look Tony, I know it matters to you but if it's gone it means you're free, right? You wanted to move on, now you can. I'm going to finish getting ready and I'll be over for seven. See you later._ "

As the line clicked off, Tony allowed his arm to droop, the receiver suspended above the cradle. He replaced it clumsily, startling himself with the clatter it made as he did so. Looking down sharply he hung the phone up properly and resumed his train of thought.

Roger was right. Of course he was, he had to be. If she had been back to his house, if she had taken the bottle, she had severed the last link she had with him. He pushed down the sudden lurch his stomach made and steeled himself.

It was over.

Closing his eyes, he nodded to himself and swallowed deeply. He was going on a date tonight and he had to get ready. He was going to get ready and he was going to have a good time. For the first time in years he was going on a date without the jealous interference of the woman, the genie, that had thwarted his every attempt at a normal life.

A normal relationship.

He ignored the fact that the last date he had been on had been without the usual interference. At least from her. He closed his mind off from the memory, from the countless times he had looked across the restaurant at her. The image of her laughing at the words of another man, the happiness he'd seen on her face. The hope he'd have that she'd at least look over, the longing he'd felt for the jealousy that had always infuriated him to emerge. The bitter twist that came from the stab of his own jealousy as he'd come close to striking her date after what he'd taken as direct provocation. The burning embarrassment he'd been left with at his actions.

He shook his head and clenched his jaw. Those things were in the past, everything was in the past and it was the future he needed to concentrate on now. Pushing off from the table he walked towards his bedroom. He was going to get ready for his date, and he was going to enjoy it.

Reaching his bedroom, he opened the door and passed through. He almost missed the sight laid out before him, the unusual sight skipping his notice until his conscious mind suddenly pricked him. He blinked at the image, willing it away. He wanted to look away, he wanted to leave but he was transfixed, mesmerised and helpless.

Unable to control them, he found his eyes tracing the lines of the bodies of the two-people laying naked in his bed, covered only partially by the thin sheet.

Wordless he stood, following the familiar curve of the ample bottom that ran into the back that was turned from him, the outline of the breast that rested on the muscular chest of her companion. He tried to close his eyes against the image, hoping it was nothing more than an illusion of his tortured mind but he couldn't. He couldn't tear his eyes away or sway them from their course as they travelled upwards, stopping briefly on the sleeping face of her, his genie, before continuing upwards. Upwards to the face of her companion, the face of the one that had ruined everything.

Wanting, needing, to look away he tried to fight against his powerlessness. It was a struggle that came to a sudden conclusion as his eyes met those of his rival as they flicked open, accompanied by a sickening smile. Broken from what was holding him he tore his gaze away, looking at anything else as his emotions whirled violently inside him.

Almost without thought he forced himself to look again, to see once more that horrific image. Turning his head first and allowing his eyes to follow he found his breath stolen away by what had replaced the scene in front of him.

They were gone.

Everything had been as it was when he'd left the room in the morning. His bed was made with its usual military precision. Nothing had been disturbed. He was alone.

Confused, drained, defeated he sunk slowly to the floor.


	5. Chapter 5

"Tony?" He heard his name being called, its sound resonating vaguely in the back of his mind. "Tony?" It came again. Echoing through the space of absent thought.

He stirred slightly at the sound that slowly registered within his brain. The sound that shattered his own silence. He heard another, quieter, accompanied by the sense of movement. He was no longer alone. The pressure of a hand pressing into his shoulder and shaking it prompted him to turn and look at the hand, upwards along the arm and across to the face.

"Roger?" He croaked, frowning. "What are you doing here?"

Roger stepped back, confused. "What am I doing here? I'm here to pick you up for our dates tonight." He answered loudly, "What are you doing down there anyway?"

Turning his head away, Tony vacantly replied. "She was here Roger."

"Who?"

"Jeannie."

"Oh, that's excellent!" Roger exclaimed happily as he clapped his hands together, noticing his friend didn't share his enthusiasm he lowered both his arms and licked his lips awkwardly and looking away before adding "I guess it isn't. Where is she now?"

"She's gone," Tony mumbled, still staring at the bed before pointing at it. "She was there in the bed…with…Rabi. They were…."

Looking from Tony to the bed, and back to Tony. Roger shook his head, scarcely believing what he was hearing. "You must have been seeing things, Tony. Jeannie loves you, she wouldn't do that."

Snapping his head around to look at Roger, Tony hissed, "She _was_ there, Roger." His face filling with anger he shifted onto his knees and stood, "She was there with _him_."

"I'm telling you I don't believe it!" Roger protested, his own temper starting to rise at this unprovoked affront. "Jeannie wouldn't do that to you! You and I know both know it! She just wouldn't do it!"

"I know she wouldn't!" Tony snapped, rubbing his hand down his face as his anger dispersed as quickly as it had appeared, "But I don't know what he would do."

Taking a few long breaths through his nose, Roger shook his head, "You're right there. But I don't know if I'd expect him to do something like that either. He seemed like a nice guy. Especially being what you said he was."

Casting his mind back, Roger could remember finding Tony that evening three months ago, sitting in much the same state he'd seen him this evening. He'd expected that the result had been a bust up between he and Jeannie but he'd never expected that her new gentleman friend was in fact the brother of the Blue Djinn that had terrorised the trio some months before. The very brother of the Djinn that had condemned Jeannie to be a genie.

He'd found himself left with questions he could hope for no answer to. Of the two people he could ask, one had vanished and the other had been too devastated to bother with matters that would only hurt him further.

Though with misgivings about Tony's intention to get out and forget Jeannie, he had hoped that tonight would be the start of the healing process, a break from the melancholy that had dampened his friend's spirits. Now it appeared that something had occurred to take him further from a resolution. Saddened for his friend and by what he'd heard he wanted better for him.

"I should…I should get ready. We're going to be late." He heard Tony mutter and looked over to him.

"Don't worry, Tony." Roger grimaced as he looked at his watch, "I think we're already a little late, I don't think they'll be waiting for us. I'll call them tomorrow to apologise, there'll be other dates." He said the last with a shrug and a smile.

"Sure. You know Rog, I'm feeling pretty beat. I might have a quick something to eat and have an early night. Tomorrow's a big day."

"Yeah," Roger nodded, "Look, if you need anything, call me. Try not to think about what you saw. After all, you never know, it might have been you mind playing tricks on you."

Trying to sound convinced Tony agreed, "Yeah, maybe. Well, I'll see you tomorrow. Sorry about tonight."

Roger waved his hand dismissively as he started to exit the bedroom, "It's ok. Like I said, there'll be other dates. Take it easy and I'll see you tomorrow."

Tony watched Roger's back as he left, he waited until he heard the front door close before letting out a long sigh. Turning back towards the bed he felt that same niggling lump rise in his throat and he tried to push it down as he walked towards it. Illusion or not he couldn't face sleeping in those sheets tonight and he pulled at them, tugging them untidily from the bed. Tearing off the pillow cases he bundled them up with the sheets and marched the whole lot to the kitchen, stuffing it in the washer.

As he had passed the stairs to the study he had missed the flash of green lace that had retreated up them, the light jingle of golden bells and malevolent sneer accompanying the scene. Nor did he see the bottle he had been looking for being twiddled idly between wicked fingers.

In the kitchen he'd been deaf to the self-satisfied boast, "If you think that's bad, Major Baby, you've seen nothing yet."


	6. Chapter 6

"5…4…"

He closed his eyes, feeling a wave of relief wash over him, he'd made it, he'd actually made it.

"3…2…"

He quelled his growing excitement as he brought his mind to focus on the job at hand and complete the crucial last minute checks.

"1…"

He could feel the capsule beginning to rumble around him. How he'd gotten this far he didn't know, how he'd managed to get around Doctor Bellows and convince him he was totally fine was beyond him. But he was glad as he heard the final order.

"BLAST OFF!"

He closed his eyes again as he felt the rocket lifting off and the g-forces forcing him down into his seat. It was the best feeling in the world, and outside of it as he hurtled towards outer space.

The radio chatter confirmed his ascent and he reached out to push the necessary switches. Responding to the questions asked of him he allowed himself to smile. Everything was going perfectly, all the work he had put in, all the time and training spent, leading up to this moment was paying off.

Everything was going smoothly as he felt the last phase of the separation sequence complete. All of the trappings holding his capsule falling away as he passed the atmosphere. It was all so right.

Until it went wrong.

If he had blinked, he would have missed it. If he had even had a moment's breadth to turn sight into reaction he would have yelled out, using his voice to strike out against the image that flew towards him. But it happened too quickly.

Much too quickly.

He wasn't in the capsule any longer. Where he was, he did not know but he was far from where he had and should be. He was no longer surrounded by the flashing buttons and switches, the whirring dials, the enclosed space that protected him from the freezing space outside. He looked around him, holding his breath as his mind struggled to comprehend what his eyes were telling him. What he was seeing was an illusion. A figment of his imagination triggered from the subconscious images he had often drawn on in dreams.

But this wasn't like those dreams.

A sense of panic gripped him as he fought hard to retain the last breath he had taken as realisation thundered upon him. He knew what would happen if he let it go. Without his helmet and oxygen lifeline he had no hope. His lungs burned and he could feel them start to seize but it was nothing compared to what would happen if he let go. Even though the end result was inevitable he couldn't let go.

"It's ok, Major Baby, you can breathe." He knew that voice, that way of speaking, and he knew not to trust the owner of it. He turned to her, understanding now why he was where he was and how he had gotten there.

"Major…" She drew out the word, holding onto it like the last vestiges of an irresistible sweetness, "I said you can breathe."

If his head had not been throbbing he would have shaken it, showing her his defiance. Through the pain radiating through his whole body he felt a sharp stab of dizziness, a wave that made him drop down to his knees. As an automatic response to this movement he brought his hands to his throat as he drew in deep lungful's of…air?

This wasn't possible.

His eyes caught sight of the flash of green that flickered past him. Dropping his hands from his throat he turned his head, then his body, to follow it. His eyes found her sauntering hips, the skirt that flared and flowed as she walked. He watched her stop and turn to face him, a smile greeting him as her coarse chuckle stole the silence.

"Don't look at me like that, darling." She drawled as her smile faded and she drew her shoulders up, bringing a defensive hand up to her décolletage, "I've brought you to the place you always wanted to go."

He stood awkwardly, tortured between feeling angry and…grateful. He quashed the last as he lumbered towards her, "If I was ever going to get here I wanted to do it on my own and in the _right_ way."

She looked at him and scoffed, "But what better way than to get here like this? To be here like this and not stuck in a stuffy little capsule wearing something that will obstruct this _wonderful_ view."

His eyes followed her as she swept her arm, indicating the view that lay before him. He drew in a breath as he took in the swirling cloud formations, the billowing oceans below encompassing the recognisable land masses. He was looking at the Earth.

"You're the first man on the Moon, darling. Isn't it wonderful?"

"Yeah," He breathed in response, not looking away from the vision in front of him.

He could hear movement and her voice again, "I'm sure my sister never thought of doing this for you."

He turned now, looking towards her. He clenched his jaw as indignation stripped away his awe. "Don't talk about her."

A slow, self-satisfied smile spread across the brunette Jeannie's lips, "I see that what happened three months ago is still a little raw, darling."

"Of course it is!" He bit, allowing himself to raise his voice. "You ruined everything."

The brunette Jeannie furrowed her brow and raised a hand to her chest once more, " _I_ ruined everything?" She moved towards him, relishing every moment of his anger and resentment despite showing confusion on her expressive face. " _I_ ruined nothing, darling. _I_ told you the _truth_ about what my sweet little sister was keeping from you." She dropped her hand and moved closer to him to the point he turned away from her slightly, "Do you mean to tell me you would rather have lived a lie? That that would have been preferable to knowing the truth?" She moved behind him now and leaned in until her lips brushed his ear, he flinched at the harsh whisper that enveloped her words, "After all, what hope did you think you had against a Djinn? A Djinn she fell in love with over two thousand years ago?" She moved her lips away and spoke louder, "Even if you had been any competition for Rabi, it doesn't matter now. You sent her away, sent her away straight into his arms. So I think you'll find, dear heart, that _I_ didn't ruin everything. _You_ did."

Tony took a leaden step away from her as his chest lurched and he dropped his chin, closing his eyes. She was right. He'd known already that what he'd done had effectively handed Jeannie to _him_ on a silver platter, but to hear it from someone else hurt.

It hurt a lot.

He heard her move again, and could sense her standing in front of him. Her hand found the side of his neck, one of the only places she could reach unobstructed by his bulky spacesuit. He kept his eyes closed tightly, feeling his jaw clench with the intensity of the pressure.

"What you need, Major Baby," She began, her voice tender now. "Is someone who loves you and will take care of you. Someone who will help you forget your pain. Someone like me."

A gentle hand touched Tony's chin and he involuntarily lifted his head with it. In the instant his eyes opened they met hers as her lips pressed into his.


	7. Chapter 7

Curtains of ivory lace billowed about her, caught in the unfettered breeze that flowed freely through the window. Face down on the mattress she awoke slowly, holding onto to the last vestiges of the dream that had occupied her sleeping hours, not wanting to lose their tantalising image. She was vaguely aware, in this limbo state, of another in the room with her. It was an awareness that was confirmed by the touch of a hand upon her shoulder and whisper of her name. She started to turn over and sit up to greet the owner of the touch, her eyes still closed, acting as a barrier against the waking world that would steal her dream away.

"You were dreaming about him again, weren't you?"

Her eyes opened now at the question. Not uttered as though an accusation but close in its former as a statement. She lowered her open eyes as a shy smile pushed back the redness forming in her cheeks. The truth of it too evident to deny or hide from.

"Haji wishes to see you," The voice spoke again, "He asked me to come fetch you."

She looked up once more, her heart sinking as her eyes rose. This moment had been coming for a long time. She'd wished to avoid it, wanting the time she had spent outside of the mortal realm, away from her Master to go unnoticed, but the all-seeing Haji had not turned the blind eye she'd hoped for.

"Come," She was instructed, "He will not wait for long."

Dropping her head in an extended nod she turned, sliding her legs to hang over the edge of the bed and stood. She raised her head with a smile at her companion and moved with them from the room, her smile feeling as false as her pretence that she was ok.

Partway down the long, marble corridor with high arching, glassless windows, her companion stopped walking. She did as they did and cocked her head as she looked at them in anticipation, wondering why they had stopped.

"I know this is not what you wished for," A heartfelt sympathy came through the words, "But everything will be alright, Jeannie, whatever the outcome."

In no way reassured, but smiling still otherwise for the kind words, Jeannie responded – "Thank you, Marilla. I do hope so. If not for me then for my-" She stopped herself as the word edged onto the tip of her tongue and realisation pricked her eyes with tears.

Marilla smiled reassuringly, grasping Jeannie's shoulders and squeezing gently, "You will have a new Master, one that will care for you and treat you fairly."

"But I don't want a new Master," Jeannie let out a sob, "I like…liked that one."

"And you'll like your new one too, you'll see." Marilla reassured again, trying to jolly her cousin with a large smile and a squeeze of her shoulders. "Now," She said as she dropped her hands from Jeannie's shoulders and started to continue down the corridor, "We've kept Haji waiting long enough. Come."

Watching her cousin's retreating back for a few, fleeting seconds, Jeannie complied. Every step she took towards Haji's halls made her heart sink lower into her stomach.

She wasn't ready for this.


	8. Chapter 8

It felt nice. Her warmth. The feel of her lips, and their taste. Like sweet nectar. Her scent. Not only the scent of the finest perfume pervaded his nostrils but the smell of her, her skin, her hair. He felt the silken touch of her skin as her hands found his neck, coursing their way from the front to the back as her arms followed behind them. He deepened the kiss, lost in the sensation of her. He heard her grown with pleasure as she pushed herself further into him and met his growth in intensity. His own verbal response was stifled by a feeling that started off in the pit of his stomach. A sense that travelled up the length of his body and sent a shot of consciousness to his brain.

Tony's eyes flew open as he realised what was happening. Grasping at the arms that had snaked around his neck he pulled them roughly away from him, breaking their hold as he ripped himself away from the invasive lips. His breath sounded ragged as a languishing smile fluttered over the brunette Jeannie's face, a momentary easing of the darkening expression that had started to grow underneath it. He worried for his life as a flash of anger pierced her eyes before she squashed it. Allowing him another chance as her lips curved dangerously once more and she turned, taking a step away and peering at the planet below.

He watched her carefully, nervously, waiting for any tell-tale sign that she would blink and send him into oblivion or remove the atmosphere she had created around them. There was every eventuality that she would survive but he knew his chances were zero.

Perhaps there was something he could say, a lie or a line he could use. A clever concoction of words that would entice her into releasing him back to the capsule he'd been in. She'd been known to fall for his charms before. Just as her sister had.

She turned then, as if sensing his thought, reading his mind. Though straight-faced when she'd turned he watched a small smile growing, one different than the last. Not as dangerous but still enough to send a shockwave through his heightened nerves.

He was afraid.

"Never mind, Major baby. There's _still_ time." She drawled, looking him up and down before biting her lip and blinking, the instant her eyes made the movement, was the instant Tony's breath stopped in his throat.

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

The awakening scent of Incense greeted them as they reached the large wooden doors to Haji's halls. His guards, watchers of the door, stood aside as Jeannie and her cousin approached. One smiled congenially, nodding his head as he pushed on one of the doors – opening it to allow them to enter. The two ladies smiled back as they passed through and into the room beyond, pausing just past the threshold as the door was pulled shut behind them.

Though seen by them a thousand times, the grandness of Haji's halls stole their breath away. Wide arches adorned with curtains of silk separated the different sections. Large carpets surrounded by plush cushions lined one wall, marking the area where Haji's wives would sit and entertain themselves, offering him counsel and comfort when he desired it. Along another wall a large table was stationed, often endowed with food and wine. From the ceiling in the centre of the room an incense burner hung, the smoke drifting and twirling from it to the lofty space above.

Stood over by one of the many windows, gazing out over the clouds below and the movements of those genie lolling lazily upon them was Haji. Knowing the face of each of his genies, aware of all of those who were masterless and residing within his kingdom he could not help but notice the absence of one of his flock. It was odd but he spared it little worry as he turned to greet the one he had summoned, and it seemed, her representative.

"Thank you, Marilla, that is all I desired you for. Leave us now." He commanded gently, ushering her away.

Marilla bowed her head at the receipt of his request, and despite wanting to stay to support her cousin, obeyed it. She flashed her a reassuring smile before quickly exiting, not wishing to anger Haji and displace his favour.

Jeannie lowered her eyes to the floor at her cousin's departure. To be here was bad enough to be here alone was worse. Knowing what would come of this meeting with the Master of all genies. She wondered if she could work her way around any decision he had made. He had always been overtly fond of her, naming her one of his favourites. In times past that fondness had worked to her advantage and she had always been able to gain an edge on Haji that other genies had failed to reach. Perhaps it was an edge that would work for her again.

A hand tucking itself under her chin bid her raise it and her eyes met with Haji's. He studied her, as if seeing right through her and smiled. He knew exactly what she had been thinking.

"You, my dear, have resided here for three months." He stated before turning and walking back towards the window, "The three months since the day you returned here to me is time enough for you to have been without your Master. Now you shall have a new one."

A stab of pain brought tears to Jeannie's eyes and she shook her head, moving towards the window also and prompting Haji to turn and look at her. "I am sorry Haji. But I do not wish to have a new Master. I still love and want my former Master. I would return to him as a mortal if would please him enough to take me back. Please do not send me to another Master."

"I'm sorry my pet, but the decision has already been made," His mellow voice did little to soothe her, "You will have a new Master. You will serve him as you would any other Master," He thumbed away the tears that had started to form on her face, hating to see her far removed from the happy genie he'd always known. "Do not trouble yourself so, he will be a good, kind Master. Better than the one you had before. He is waiting to meet you."

The sob that was about to burst from her was strangled as Haji's words surprised her, "He is here?" She sniffed, taken aback at this unfamiliar happening.

Haji's bearded cheeks piqued as he smiled widely and started walking towards one of the curtain obscured archways. Jeannie watched him, wordless and stricken. Unable to turn her vision away despite the pain it caused her to watch.

Haji reached out, pulling one of the curtains back as he reached them and beckoned to someone beyond. He was still smiling as he turned around and stood aside, allowing they he had beckoned to pass into the room.

Seeing the face of her new Master, Jeannie felt a thunderbolt run through her.


	9. Chapter 9

It seemed impossible but he was back in the capsule. Back on course of the lunar orbit. Nothing had changed and it seemed as if all the time he had spent on the moon had been but a whisper, the happenings occurring in the merest scent of a second. Like her sister, and rather unexpectedly, the brunette Jeannie at least had a sense of decency. He'd not expected to be returned here, much less without any visible disturbances to the instruments or alterations to the course he'd be forced to explain. He baulked at the ludicrous explanation he'd have had to produce to being absent from the capsule to Doctor Bellows, much less to General Schaffer. To convince one was hard enough but the other…

He pondered on Jeannie's sister a moment, allowing the sensation of her lips on his to slink through his mind. Whatever spell she had tried to cast upon him had been broken but her words resonated long after the effect of her magic had evaporated. _'There's still time_ ' What had she meant by that? Had she meant what she said about him needing someone that loved him, that she was the one he needed? Or was it just another of her lies? Another attempt at misdirection? A feeble attempt to stab her sister's wounded heart.

But was Jeannie's heart wounded? He couldn't help but relive the scene he had come upon in his bedroom, a picture backed up by the brunette Jeannie's protestation that her sister had fallen in love with his rival over two thousand years ago. The serenity on Jeannie's face had been plain, easy to see. As undeniable in its existence as the smile on Rabi's face that had haunted him ever since he'd seen it.

He turned his mind to other things as he felt his heart wrench. Absently answering a query made of him on the radio he flipped a switch. His movements robotic, he pushed the buttons requested of him. It would soon be time to start the return to Earth, his time in the loneliness of space passing much too quickly. With the distractions that had occurred on this flight it hadn't been quite the refuge from his troubles as he had hoped. He had wanted everything to be as distant from him as he was from the world below, to feel his problems drop away with the trappings of his capsule but it hadn't been that simple. What he had hoped to be a sanctuary had only served to amplify the intensity of his woes and the closeness of the dreams he couldn't escape from.

He allowed his mind to wander to the imagery that had accompanied every sleeping moment of the last three months, the scenes playing out in the same relentless fashion as they hurtled towards the ending that had always been uncertain.

It started each night as it always had done. Her gleaming blue eyes calling to him as she stood shrouded in throngs of cloud, tears tracking down her face. Despite his feelings about what she had done he moved towards her, aching at her sorrow. His arm outstretched, fingers reaching to brush away the rivulets of moisture upon her beautiful face, he whispered her name softly. Before he could feel the touch of her cheeks upon his fingertips she would turn into smoke, vanishing into the mist that enveloped them. He'd stand, his arm still reaching, eyes wide open, darting from side to side trying to catch a glimpse of her. There'd be no sign as his body matched the movement of his eyes and he would frantically filter through the cloud that seemed to thicken as he searched. Deaf to his own voice he'd call for her. His voice hoarse as he shouted her name into the vapid distance.

But she was nowhere to be found.

In his desperate searching he would fail to notice the growing density of the mist obscuring his surroundings, shrouding the figure that followed him. Watching with calm brown eyes, his blue lips curving upwards at their corners.

Breathless, he'd stop, hands on his thighs as he'd lean forward, trying to open his chest to get as much air as he could. In his pause he would miss the movement of the figure behind him, the arm reaching outward, fingers splayed. The curve of the blue lips turning from one of intrigued amusement to one of malevolent pleasure.

Before the hand touched him he would awaken. Just moments before catching sight of a flash of Pink and calling out the name he had repeated so often. He'd see her eyes again, no longer filled with the emotion of before but now with the width of fear. Her lips, previously closed now parted, widening as they took in the happening behind him. He'd catch the direction of her vision and turn then. Seeing a flash of blue that startled him. Facing away from it as the splayed fingers would come within touching distance, he'd start to call the name that lay on the tip of his tongue as he awoke.

Running through the dream in his mind, he relived it. The distraction allowing the invasion of the dream into his waking life. Lost within its uncomfortable images he missed the cue that crackled through the speaker. The prompt to press a vital switch that marked the start of his descent through the atmosphere. His silence prompted a repeat of the order, a follow up request to confirm he could hear those on the Earth below him.

He was beyond reach as in his mind he searched for her that he had chased away. Needing to find her, needing to know the outcome of the dream that plagued him. To face or escape the blue figure that chased him. To know him.

As the seconds before his re-entry dashed by the pleas for his response grew more urgent. The voice of his friend desperate over the transmission. Calling for him. Calling for him to respond. Calling for him as he called for the one in his dream state. Barring all sound as he listened to the sharp thudding of his heartbeat.

His mind drifting from the dream, heading towards the end, as inevitable as it had become, he became aware of another voice. One unfamiliar yet distantly recognisable. Its command threw him back into the waking world. He answered the calls that were louder now, their words sharp.

Falling into silence as the window for his action passed.


End file.
